No Reversals for this deck, thanks!

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 17 Aug 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

VGimlet	17 Aug 2002
Last night I had a very odd experience. I decided I should get some practice with other decks, so I decided to use the Shapeshifter to read for my cat. Since it was a new deck, I shuffled long and well. I have always used reversals, and the random way I shuffle produces them. I lay out my cards - all reversed. It didn't feel right, so I turned them around, and then pulled a reversed clarification card. Very fishy, I thought. In any spread, including the three card, I usually get at least one reversal. So I turned over my deck - to find all the cards were reversed - or upright, depending on how you look at it...and all reversed didn't feel right to me at all. I got kind of an odd feeling, and decided it was enough of that deck for the night. :D True, maybe I inadvertantly didn't turn the deck enough, or possible I re-ordered the ones that I turned somehow. But I think I will only read upright with the Shapeshifter deck, even so.

RedWood	17 Aug 2002
interesting..I have that deck..Have not used it yet..I thought in the book they only use uprights anyway....Hmmm..

Marion	17 Aug 2002
I had that deck, traded it, but I think it is supposed to be used upright.

emily2otters	17 Aug 2002
okay, that's the weirdest "sentient deck" story i've heard yet. every single card was facing the same way? amazing! spooky! yeah, i guess they don't want to be used with reversals, do they?

Kiama	18 Aug 2002
I soetimes find tha some decks beg not to be reversed... Sometimes the artwork is just so detailed, and symbolic that it seems a shame to have to try and read it upside down! Decks like the Shapeshifter, Cwltic Dragon, and Rbin Wod fall into this category I think, whereas decks with non-ilustrated pips I find very easy to read with reversals... I don't use reversals anymre, cu I always use a Robin WOod deck... Kiama

Liliana	18 Aug 2002
Rohrig qwould be hard to read reversed I think, a few of its cards might make sense reversed, but most are such detailed lovely art that it just throws me off seeing it upside down :THP

VGimlet	18 Aug 2002
I didn't read the book at all, so I didn't realize the Shapeshifter was designed to be read right-side up only. There are a few decks I don't use reversals with, the Whimsical, Rorhig, hmm, a few others I think. Of course, my rational side is telling me I just didn't turn the cards much while I shuffled, and the ones I turned got re-ordered somehow. But it *felt* really strange when I turned them over.

catlin	19 Aug 2002
I usually use reversals no matter if the books states to use them or not. The deck will tell me if the reversals are ok or not. If there are too many reversed cards in a spread like 7 reversed cards in a 10-card-spread, I think that the querent somehow turned the stack during shuffling so I decide to put the majority of the cards upside.

The No Reversals for this deck, thanks! thread was originally posted on 17 Aug 2002 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.